Benoît Pioulard

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Multi-instrumentalist/writer Thomas Meluch -- who uses Benoît Pioulard as one of his musical alter egos -- combines found sounds, electronics, and atmospheric rock and pop in his various projects.

A part of the Rattling Wall Collective in Dutch, a loose-knit group of like-minded musicians, Meluch also collaborated on a multimedia piece for the University of Michigan's 2003 Film and Video Studies Association Lightworks Festival. He played with half a dozen bands in the area, including his own Esmae, an experimental rock quartet inspired by Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Explosions in the Sky.

When Esmae disbanded in 2005, Meluch concentrated on his work as Benoît Pioulard. He began a series of handmade limited-edition CD-R releases, and late that year the Enge EP was released by Moodgadget. Tracks from the EP also appeared on collections from Astrolab and Ghostly. Kranky released Benoît Pioulard's debut full-length, Précis, a shimmering hybrid of laptop pop and shoegaze, in fall 2006. That winter, he contributed a song to Ghostly International's digitally released EP New Faces, and early in 2007 the Fir single arrived. While working on his second Benoît Pioulard album, Meluch worked with his friend Praveen Sharma on the song "Death as a Man," providing lyrics and vocals; contributed a track to the Moodgadget compilation Expanse at Low Levels; and continued his series of Polaroid photographs. A digital re-release of the Enge EP arrived in 2008, as well as Songs Spun Simla, a six-song collaboration between Sharma and Meluch; Temper arrived that fall with a more tightly structured sound than previous Pioulard releases. The 7" releases Lee and Flocks followed in 2008 and 2009.

For his third Kranky full-length, 2010's Lasted, Meluch refined his songcraft even further. During this time he partnered with the Sight Below's Rafael Anton Irisarri as Orcas, who released their self-titled debut album in 2012. A year later, Pioulard's fittingly named Hymnal reflected the inspiration Meluch drew from the religious iconography in the cathedrals he visited while recording in England and mainland Europe. After spending more time with Orcas -- which included the release of their second album, Yearling, in 2014 -- Meluch returned with 2015's Sonnet, the fifth Benoît Pioulard album and the first made solely with analog tape and effects. A fractured radial bone in his right wrist led to 2016's Radial, a pay-what-you-want effort released to help with Meluch's medical bills. A few months later, The Benoît Pioulard Listening Matter arrived on the tenth anniversary of Précis, and recalled that album's homespun ambient pop. Lignin Poise was originally released as a tour-only CD-R in February of 2017 before Beacon Sound issued it on vinyl the following September. ~ Heather Phares, Rovi